Women’s ministry, ice cream socials, college student outreaches, playing in the church band on top of working full-time, being a mother and a spouse — all in a day’s work for Nola Dawson (KCTD #2). For Dawson, her heart has always been in serving in the church, in many different capacities.
At Northland Cathedral, Dawson can be found working in the kitchen cleaning dishes, setting up booths for the women’s ministry and playing the sax in the church band.
“I have always had a servant’s heart in the church… that is the example that I saw in my parents.”
“Busy” would be the word that any outside person would use to describe Dawson. Even as she is cleaning the leftover empty bins from the evening’s ice cream social fundraiser, fellow volunteers are referring to her for directions and answers to their questions. Dawson answers their questions with a soft, but clear directive and delegates tasks with ease.
“After going through KCTD I have found I delegate more and am more trusting [of] my fellow community of Christians in my church. Therefore, since I am opening myself up more, I am opening myself up to more friendships within the church,” says Dawson. “Trying to control ‘my ministry’ robbed others of the opportunities and blessings to minister.”
The ice cream social that evening served as the 4th annual fundraiser for one of Dawson’s favorite ministries – College Boxes. The mission is to send boxes to students that have graduated from Northland Cathedral’s youth ministry to remind them of their church family back home.
“It is so easy to ‘forget home and forget God’ and think ‘Oh, I am on my own. Now I don’t have to go to church’,” says Dawson. “Not all of [the students] are from a church home and their only connection to the church was a friend from high school [who] invited them to church. “So there are all sorts of different opportunities … and kids they room with in the dorms see it.”
Since its establishment in 2008, College Boxes has sent over 100 packages to students at 11 different colleges. 
“There are just all sorts of seeds that you can plant that the Lord will use,” says Dawson.
Tres Dias has not only impacted the way that Dawson serves in her church life, but also her family life. Dawson’s husband went the weekend before and greeted Nola with flowers after her weekend.
“I went home and [Steven] had shampooed all the carpets, all on his own and he cleaned the entire house. It just showed… me how much he loved me by doing all those things,” said Dawson, “He is just more appreciative of the role that I play as his wife and caregiver to him and our home. [Kansas City Tres Dias] has just blessed our marriage all around and, of course, I am more respectful of him and his male role.”
Dawson was also able to sponsor two more ladies through the following #3 Kansas City Tres Dias set of weekends.
Even with Dawson’s full-time service history at her church and loaded personal life, Dawson is still dedicated to serve at Kansas City Tres Dias. When asked why she has decided to add Kansas City Tres Dias to her already full plate, her answer was simple.“Because of the blessing that it was for us, I wanted to give them the same blessing. They were co-workers of mine so I knew about them and the struggles they were going through…They are both really excited and serving on the next Tres Dias (#4).”
“I wanted to give back the blessings that I received and increase the community of God. There is no other way for us to continue the building of Tres Dias unless we all contribute to the cause and give back.”
